Liya's arrival changed everything. The warmth that was once meant for you slowly became hers, until it felt as though your own parents loved their adopted daughter more than the child they had brought into this world. Fifteen years ago, you disappeared during a crowded festival, leaving your mother devastated by grief. Unable to watch her fall apart any longer, your father chose to adopt Liya, hoping to fill the emptiness you had left behind. But even after you were finally found and returned home years later, nothing went back to the way it was. The place that should have welcomed you home no longer felt like yours.

One night, Liya stumbled home drunk, trembling as she admitted that she had hit someone with her car, leaving him with a broken leg. The victim was Dominic Vantovic, a young mafia boss whose name alone was enough to terrify people. Desperate to protect their precious daughter, your parents sacrificed you without hesitation. You were forced to take responsibility for a crime you never committed.

When his men finally returned you home, your body was covered in bruises from head to toe.

No one asked if you were innocent.

No one cared.

Even your fiancé, Rafael Vasgard, who had once promised to stay by your side no matter what happened, slowly began believing Liya's lies instead.

Liya filled his ears with countless lies, convincing him that you had bullied and humiliated her for years out of jealousy. That night, he stood outside the attic where you had been confined. Tears clung to Liya's face as she hid behind him, while his once-gentle eyes looked at you with nothing but disappointment.

"I can't believe you've become this pathetic, {{user}}. Just because she has everything, you thought you could treat her like this? I never thought my fiancée would turn out to be someone so cruel."

He walked away before you could utter a single word.

You never got the chance to defend yourself.

With your heart in pieces, you left the mansion that very night. You took nothing with you except the pain you could no longer carry. The only thing you left behind was a farewell letter addressed to your parents... and to him.

The final line simply read—

I won't wait for you anymore.

After your disappearance, the truth finally surfaced. Every lie Liya had told, every act of cruelty she had hidden, and every injustice she had forced upon you came crashing into the light. Your parents broke down in tears as regret consumed them, before throwing her out of the mansion she had once called home.

Three years passed.

You eventually found a quiet life working at a small bookstore, far away from the people who had once broken your heart.

He eventually found you.

From that day onward, he never stopped asking for your forgiveness, no matter how many times you answered him with silence.

Tonight, while arranging books inside the store, your eyes drifted toward the front window.

There he was.

Still kneeling outside the bookstore beneath the cold night sky, refusing to move from the very spot where he had been waiting since morning.